Stride Consumer Partners racks up $420m for maiden fund

Stride invests in consumer products and services.

Stride Consumer Partners has closed its debut fund at $420 million. Stride Consumer Fund I’s limited partners include consultants, endowments, fund of funds, insurance companies, and pensions. Campbell Lutyens was the placement agent for the fund while Latham & Watkins, LLP was the legal advisor. Stride invests in consumer products and services.

PRESS RELEASE

BOSTON, April 27, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Stride Consumer Partners LLC (“Stride” or the “Firm”), a growth-equity investment firm that focuses on passion brands in consumer products and services, announced today the final close of its inaugural fund, Stride Consumer Fund I (the “Fund”), with $420 million of capital commitments. The Fund exceeded its $300 million target and was oversubscribed, closing above its cap with support from a diverse and global group of institutional investors. The Fund’s investors also include more than a dozen founders and senior executives with whom the Stride team has partnered previously.

“We are grateful that such an exceptional and enthusiastic group of consultants, endowments, fund of funds, insurance companies, and pensions have entrusted us with their capital, and we continue to focus on building an outstanding portfolio on their behalf,” said Tim Burke, Partner.

The Fund has closed on three investments, all of which reflect Stride’s strategy of partnering with talented founders and business leaders that are creating a differentiated and lasting connection with their customers:

Skinfix is a female-founded pioneer in clean and clinically active skincare that is tested and recommended by dermatologists to heal, replenish, and maintain the skin barrier on both face and body.

Chomps is a minority-owned and -operated brand on a mission to provide the highest quality, best tasting meat snacks made with sustainably sourced proteins and zero grams of added sugar.

Truewerk was founded to elevate the experience of the 26+ million tradespeople in the U.S. by outfitting them with cutting edge technical workwear.

“We admire these amazing founders and management teams for their vision, judgement, resourcefulness and leadership. We appreciate the trust they have placed in Stride and are infinitely grateful that, amongst so many compelling alternatives, they chose to partner with us,” said Juan Marcos Hill, Partner.

Steve Berg, Partner, added, “Many of us have spent twenty years helping founders and entrepreneurs pursue their visions and build their companies. So, it’s incredibly gratifying to have reached this milestone in Stride’s launch and development. We successfully completed fundraising the same way we do everything – as a team. And we’re energized to continue helping build remarkable companies, including Stride.”

A special thanks:
We would like to thank the entire Stride team, who together worked tirelessly to launch the Firm, complete fundraising, and commence our partnership with three exceptional brands. We would like to thank our limited partners for their confidence in and commitment to Stride. We also want to express our tremendous gratitude to our indispensable partners at Campbell Lutyens, who served as our placement agent, and Latham & Watkins, LLP, who served as our legal advisor.

About Stride Consumer Partners:
Stride is a private equity firm that specializes in partnering with talented and dynamic founders, entrepreneurs, and business leaders to build the next generation of great consumer brands. Founded by a passionate group of experienced investor-operators, Stride’s unique approach brings together a fully integrated team of successful investors working alongside seasoned operators to assist high-growth and disruptive consumer products and services businesses to hit their stride. Together, we support our partners on their journey as they take decisive steps toward delivering on their vision. Within consumer, we focus on the following areas of expertise: beauty, food and beverage, active lifestyle and multi-unit consumer services.